Technology and business trend of the environment and recycling business in Japan

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

No. 128: Japanese general contractors are busily developing the concept of a zero energy building (May 10, 2012)

Business trend:

The net zero energy building, or zero
energy building (ZEB) for short, gets supplied with electricity from an
electric power company, but it generates and stores electricity by itself to
reduce purchase volume considerably. Because it can sell surplus electricity to
an electric power company, the procurement volume of power comes out even.

Shimizu developed a design method to reduce
energy consumption to virtually zero through self-support of electricity by
employing windows with high heat insulating properties and utilizing natural
ventilation. The company got an order from a religious institution for a low-rise
office building for about 5 billion yen. The office building is scheduled to be
completed in March 2013. This building will supposedly be the first ZEB in
Japan. In addition to using LED illuminations and insulated windows, the
company will introduce the latest building energy management system (BEMS) for
full utilization of the electricity stored in battery.

Obayashi is developing a technology to
construct a ZEB that conserves energy using earth thermal whose temperature
remains the same throughout the year. Takenaka has been developing the idea of carbon-minus
building that supplies surplus energy to other buildings. Toda plans to
construct a ZEB by 2020. It costs 30-40% higher to construct a ZBE than a
standard building. Shimizu is constructing its head office building in Tokyo that
reduces carbon dioxide emissions by more than 60%.

In 2009, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry laid down a policy that newly buildings be a ZEB by 2030, and plans to
appropriate a budget for subsidies to construct a building closed to a ZEB. The
construction industry is busily occupied with the development of ZEB concepts
because ZEBs are supposed to grow widespread in 2020.